Press freedom groups allege Larry Ellison promised to fire CNN anchors

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Two organizations dedicated to press freedom, which are also shareholders in Paramount Skydance, are requesting access to the company’s financial records and internal communications. They are concerned about claims that Paramount leaders may have offered benefits to the White House in exchange for approval of its planned acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.

A letter sent Thursday to Paramount’s top lawyer, Makan Delrahim, expresses concern over reports that David Ellison, who owns Paramount, and others may have offered favors to the Trump administration. The groups writing the letter believe these reports suggest a potentially illegal exchange of favors, which would be a violation of their responsibilities to the company and could lead to both civil and criminal penalties.

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Major changes are coming to two TV news organizations as they merge under new ownership by Paramount, following its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. These changes are expected to include job losses and potential pressure to align coverage with the preferences of Donald Trump.

The letter references Delaware state law which grants shareholders the right to review company records if they have a legitimate reason.

Paramount declined to comment on the letter.

The letter highlights concerns about promises made by David Ellison and his father, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, regarding significant changes they allegedly planned for CNN, which is part of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Last summer, the Ellison family bought Paramount, the company that owns CBS and the famous film studio on Melrose Avenue.

The letter points to changes happening at CBS since its purchase, specifically mentioning the cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s late-night show shortly after he called a settlement between Paramount and Donald Trump a “big fat bribe.”

Since Larry Ellison took over, the letter claims, many well-known journalists have left the network, and viewership has fallen to record-low levels.

According to a letter, Larry Ellison, a financial backer of the potential Paramount-Warner merger, allegedly informed White House officials that Paramount plans to revamp CNN – similar to how they handled CBS – and would remove any news anchors or commentators disliked by Donald Trump if the deal goes through.

This move follows a recent shareholder vote where Warner Bros. Discovery investors strongly approved the merger. The takeover, backed by the Larry Ellison family, is set to be the largest deal in Hollywood for almost ten years. Warner stockholders would receive $31 per share, which is four times what the stock was worth a year ago.

The letter came from two organizations dedicated to protecting journalists: the Freedom of the Press Foundation, which creates secure tools and monitors press freedom issues, and Reporters Without Borders, which tracks press freedom around the world.

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The large-scale merger is still awaiting approval from regulatory bodies in the U.S. and other countries, and there’s increasing resistance from within the industry.

The groups are being represented by Brendan Ballou, a former federal prosecutor who recently founded the Public Integrity Project to fight suspected government corruption, and Ronald Poliquin, an attorney from Delaware.

This letter, potentially a first step toward legal action, raises new concerns about the proposed $111 billion deal that would make Paramount a major player in the industry.

If the deal with Warner Bros. Discovery goes through, the Ellisons would gain control of popular channels like HBO and TBS, along with a huge collection of films and TV shows – including favorites like Harry Potter, DC Comics, Scooby-Doo, and CNN.

As a huge movie fan, I’ve been following the news about Paramount – and it sounds like David Ellison, their leader, is really pushing to buy out Warner Bros. by the end of September. What’s interesting is that President Trump seems to be in favor of it, and he’s been wanting to see some big changes at CNN for a while now, so it all feels connected.

However, the planned merger would leave the new company with $79 billion in debt, raising concerns that Paramount would have to significantly reduce spending just to manage that debt.

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Democratic members of Congress are asking California Attorney General Rob Bonta to investigate whether the merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. could lead to job losses or reduce competition.

I’ve been following the news about this proposed merger, and it sounds like a lot of people – politicians, unions, and activist groups – are really urging California’s Attorney General, Rob Bonta, to take a close look at it. They’re hoping he’ll actually sue to block the deal, arguing it would be anti-competitive. It’s like they’re all trying to get him to step in and stop it from happening.

As a film critic, I’m seeing a huge wave of concern from within the industry about the proposed merger. Over 4,000 people – seriously, big names like Ben Stiller, Bryan Cranston, J.J. Abrams, Jane Fonda, and Kristen Stewart are among them – have signed a letter urging regulators to stop it. Their big worry? That if this goes through, we’ll be left with only four major studios controlling the whole landscape, and that’s not a good thing for creativity or competition.

People worry that merging these companies will result in many job losses and a drop in the high-quality shows and news that Warner Bros., CNN, and HBO currently produce.

The Hollywood film industry has seen thousands of job losses in the last seven years, starting with Disney’s acquisition of Fox. These cuts, combined with production shutdowns during the 2023 labor strikes, have significantly impacted the industry. Roughly 42,000 entertainment jobs disappeared between 2022 and 2024.

Thirty-four Democrats in California’s congressional delegation wrote a letter to Attorney General Bonta on Thursday, urging him to carefully review the merger.

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If Larry Ellison succeeds in buying Warner Bros. Discovery, it would result in Middle Eastern royal families becoming part-owners of CBS and CNN.

The deal is expected to become one of the largest leveraged buyouts ever.

Ballou, currently collaborating with organizations that advocate for press freedom, used to be a special counsel at the Justice Department, where he specialized in private equity deals.

He left the Justice Department in January 2025 after Trump’s return to the presidency. In his book, “Plunder: Private Equity’s Plan to Pillage America,” Ballou analyzed major leveraged buyouts and discovered that many led to company bankruptcies.

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2026-05-08 19:31